I typically do not give "traditional" homework. Instead, I would like to encourage that the kids are doing the following on a nightly basis:
This is my general homework philosophy for a couple of reasons. The big one is that I feel kids have so much going on these days with extra curricular activities (band, sports, clubs, etc.) and I LOVE and encourage that. I do not want them to have the added anxiety of traditional homework to worry about when they might have nights they are not even home until 8 or 9 pm. I also think it is important for them to have time to simply be kids and learn through natural play and socialization - playing outside, using their imaginations, socializing with neighborhood friends, and spending quality time with family. Another reason that this is my philosophy, is because I have high learning expectations for the time that they are with me in the classroom so I do not feel it is necessary to assign additional school work to be completed at home.
This does not mean I will never assign homework, though. There might be certain times that I will and when I do, I will be sure to have the kids put it in their agenda books and I will make an announcement via the newsletter page on my website. For example, I might have the students complete a book report on a book that they are reading at home. Also, if we do not get through all of what we need to in a day, I might assign the work to be finished up for homework. There are some families (and even students) that enjoy having traditional homework. I like to mention that if this is the case, please feel free to reach out to me and I can arrange that.
- Reading and/or being read to (at least 20 minutes per day/100 minutes per week)
- Practicing/maintaining math skills and math fact fluency (at least 10 minutes per day/50 minutes per week)
- Practicing their Word Study words
This is my general homework philosophy for a couple of reasons. The big one is that I feel kids have so much going on these days with extra curricular activities (band, sports, clubs, etc.) and I LOVE and encourage that. I do not want them to have the added anxiety of traditional homework to worry about when they might have nights they are not even home until 8 or 9 pm. I also think it is important for them to have time to simply be kids and learn through natural play and socialization - playing outside, using their imaginations, socializing with neighborhood friends, and spending quality time with family. Another reason that this is my philosophy, is because I have high learning expectations for the time that they are with me in the classroom so I do not feel it is necessary to assign additional school work to be completed at home.
This does not mean I will never assign homework, though. There might be certain times that I will and when I do, I will be sure to have the kids put it in their agenda books and I will make an announcement via the newsletter page on my website. For example, I might have the students complete a book report on a book that they are reading at home. Also, if we do not get through all of what we need to in a day, I might assign the work to be finished up for homework. There are some families (and even students) that enjoy having traditional homework. I like to mention that if this is the case, please feel free to reach out to me and I can arrange that.